Ladies and gentlemen, please note that Australia`s goverment has come to rob the money, Australia`s goverment has come to rob the money.
Australian Finance Minister Scott Morrison announced today that the passenger departure tax (Passenger Movement Charge) will increase by $5 to $60 from the current $55 starting July 1 next year.
PS:, a departure tax, is levied on all passengers who leave Australia by air, whether they are foreign tourists or Australian citizens, who are required to pay this tax as long as they leave Australia`s country. Taxes and fees have been included in the ticket in advance.
To say why goverment suddenly decided to increase the departure tax, it has to start with backpackers.
Previously, backpackers who came to Australia on a working vacation visa, (working holiday visa), paid taxes on their income from working in Australia, although tax exemption was payable for those earning less than $18000 and more than $18000.
Later, goverment plans to change the backpacker tax (backpacker tax) policy by removing exemptions and taxing backpackers` income, regardless of size, at a rate of 32.5 percent.
As soon as the plan was launched, it drew strong dissatisfaction and protest from the relevant industries. Therefore, under heavy pressure, goverment had to abandon the plan and instead, from January 1 next year, it levied a 19% tax on the income of backpackers under $37000. The excess is taxed at the normal rate.
At the same time, the visa fee for working vacation visas was reduced by $50 to $390.
But what if goverment loses a lot of revenue? Then earn it back from the departure tax.
As a result, there was an increase in the departure tax.
In response to goverment`s decision, Margy Osmond, chief executive of, Tourism and Transport Forum, said goverment was right to lower its tax on backpackers, but Australia`s departure tax is already high and now has to increase, which is unacceptable.
"as a representative of the tourism industry, TTF is firmly opposed to raising the departure tax," she said. In the run-up to the federal election, we have made it clear that no political party is elected to leave the $55 departure tax unchanged. "
"but now that the goverment has decided to increase the departure tax without discussion with the parties, we are very disappointed."
"this is like `stealing money`!"
"goverment is still thinking of tourism as a cash cow. It`s crazy!"
Australia`s goverment began levying a departure tax in 1995 to subsidize spending by customs, immigration and tourism and quarantine services, initially at A $27 and rising to A $55 in 2012.
At present, Australia is the world`s highest departure tax outside the United Kingdom. Australia`s high departure tax has come under fire as early as 2013 at the International Tourism Forum. Australia was also ranked 130th out of 140 countries in the 2013 World Economic Forum evaluation of global tourism competitiveness due to such factors as high costs.
Industry insiders said that over the past three years, the number of people holding working vacation visas in Australia has dropped by 43000. For this reason, goverment adopted TTF`s recommendation to reduce taxes and fees for backpackers and lower visa fees, while allocating A $10 million to increase the number of backpackers. These policies are very desirable and conducive to the development of the tourism industry, but the increase in the departure tax is tantamount to dismantling the wall, which will have a great negative impact on Australia`s tourism industry as a whole and the national economy.
We do not know whether the increase in the Well, departure tax will have an impact on Australia`s tourism industry, but it will have a great impact on ourselves. After visiting relatives in China and traveling to other countries, we will have to spend more money on it. Alas, at the thought of this, Xiao Wei has a heart, liver and lung pain.
